Khana- Indian Recipes, Ingredients and Indian Food Guide - Pongal Recipes

Punjabi cuisine (from the Punjab region of Northern India and Eastern Pakistan). Punjabi cuisine can be non - vegetarian or completely vegetarian. One of the main features of Punjabi cuisine is its diverse range of dishes. Home cooked and restaurant Punjabi cuisine can vary significantly, with restaurant style using large amounts of clarified butter, known locally as ghee, with liberal amounts of butter and cream with home cooked concentrating on mainly upon wheat masalas (spice) flavourings. Though wheat varieties form their staple food, Punjabis do cook rice on special occasions. During winter a delicacy, Roh Di Kheer, is cooked using rice. Rice is cooked for a long time in sugar cane juice.

Within the state itself, there are different preferences. People in the area of Amritsar prefer stuffed parathas and milk products. In fact, the area is well known for quality of its milk products. There are certain dishes which are exclusive to Punjab, such as Mah Di Dal and Saron Da Saag (Sarson Ka Saag). The food is tailor - made for the Punjabi lifestyle in which most of the rural folk burn up a lot of calories while working in the fields. The main masala in a Punjabi dish consists of onion, garlic and ginger. Tandoori food is a Punjabi speciality especially for non - veg dishes. Many of the most popular elements of Anglo - Indian cuisine - such as Tandoor, Naan, Pakoras and vegetable dishes with paneer - derive from the Punjab.

Punjabi Food

A typical Indian restaurant in the United States serves a host of Punjabi food. Many non-Indian identify Punjabi food with the Indian food. Punjabi food includes classic favourite such as Tandoori Chicken, Naan, parathas, Alu Tikki, Makke di Roti and Sarson ka Saag and many more. Punjab a northwestern state of India is also known as 'the Land of Milk and Honey'.

A typical Punjabi meal with consist of roti, daal, yogurt and curried vegetable. Many Punjabi eat rice very infrequently and only on special occasions. Punjabi meals usually have lot of onion, tomatoes, cumin, turmeric, mustard, garlic, ginger cooked in pure cow ghee. Milk is a very important part of Punjabi food in its many form such as yogurt (dahi), lassi, paneer, makhan (white butter) and ghee. In rural India, Punjabi food is mostly served on "Dhaba". Dhaba is a usually self-service roadside food joint that is frequented by truck drivers and road travellers.